Electroplating rack



April 6, 1948. E. SCHROEDER 2,439,190

ELECTROPLATING RACK Filed July 13,1944

I N V EN TOR. Lt. SCH/905051? Arm/Mm ?atentecl Apr. 6, 1948 TEN-T This invention relates to'article supporting apparatus and more particularly to plating racks for holding articles during the electro-plating thereof and a method of making such a rack.

Objects of the invention are to provide a simple,

practicable and efficient plating rack whereby a positive and permanent electrical contact between each individual article support and a conducting frame is insured and the connection between the support and frame are protected against acid corrosion.

In accordance with the above objects, the present invention, in one embodiment thereof, comprises a rubber coated frame of conducting metal having side, top and bottom members with article supporting and conducting cross bars arranged between the top and bottom members and connected to the side members, the cross bars being provided with spaced screw-threaded cavities, each of which carries, at its inner end wall, a silver pellet, and. an article supporting and conducting hook screw-threaded into each cavity and pressed against the silver pellet to deform it, thus providing a positive and permanent electrical contact between each individual hook and its supporting bar. For the purpose of protecting the screw threads of the hook and cavity from acid corrosion, the hook threads have liquid rubber latex or a suitable rubber substitute applied thereto.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a front elevational view, partly in section, of a plating rack embodying the features of the invention and Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical detail section taken on the line 2--2 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawing, the numeral ill indicates, in general, a rectangular framework or plating rack composed of uprights II and I2 interconnected by top and bottom horizontal bars l3 and I4 and a plurality of interconnecting horizontal cross bars [5. The entire framework, including the cross bars, may be of brass or other suitable conducting material, which is preferably rubber coated throughout, as indicated at 16, for insulating and protective purposes. Extensions from the uprights H and I2 above the top bar l3 are bent, as shown at H and [8, to form hangers, by means of which the described rack may be suspended from a bus bar [9 of a conventional electroplating apparatus in an electrolyte (not shown).

- z' cnims. (01; 2

Each ofthe cross bars" '5 is formed with a pin-- rality of suitably spaced horizontally extending screw-threaded cavities'ifl (Fig. '2), each terminer end wall. Inserted or drdpped into ease of the cavities 20 is a deformable contact member 24, which may take the form of a normally spherical pellet of silver or any good electrical conducting material. Article supporting hooks 25 of suitable electrical conducting material, each having a nut-shaped intermediate portion 26 and a screwthreaded shank portion 21, are each dipped or otherwise suitably treated by applying a liquid rubber later, indicated at 28, and immediately screw-threaded into the cavities 20 and with sufficient tightness to press the contact member 2A into the cone-shaped depression 2| forming the inner end wall of the cavity. The members 24 may become slightly deformed in threading the hooks 25 into position and thus they provide positive and permanent electrical contacts between each individual article supporting hook 25 and the conducting frame cross bars l5 and, consequently, a conducting path to the article to be electroplated and suspended from the hook is positively completed. In screw-threading the hook it into the cavity 20 and against the deformable contact member 24, which becomes slightly de-. formed, the latex on the inner end face of the hook, where it engages the member 24, is removed therefrom by an abrading action as the hook is threaded into position under compression. I'he liquid rubber latex or other suitable material 28 applied to the screw-threaded shank portion 2'! of the hook 25 positively seals the cavity 20 and the screw threads from contact with the acid of the bath and thus corrosion is prevented.

The pressure of the pellet 24 against the end of the shank 21 also tends to force the internal and external threads together to more effectively seal and exclude electrolyte from the cavity, into which the shank is threaded.

What is claimed is:

1. An article supporting rack for electroplating comprising an insulation coated frame of electrical conducting material, an insulation coated cross bar thereof having a screw-threaded cavity terminating in a cone-shaped inner end wall, a deformable contact pellet of conducting material engaging in the cone-shaped inner end wall, and an article supporting and electrical conducting hook having a screw-threaded portion fixedly threaded into the cavity under compression against and deforming said contact pellet to inframe also coated with insulation and having a screw-threaded cavity therein terminating in a cone-shaped inner wall, an article supporting and electrical conducting hook having a threaded portion threaded into said cavity, and a deformable metallic contact pellet interposed between the cone-shaped inner wall and an end of the conducting hook and compressed to provide an appreciable area of contact between the crossbar and hook for insuring a positive electrical contact therebetween, said threaded portion of the hook having a coating of relatively fluid insula tion thereon which is partially removed by the abrasive action of threading the hook into the cross bar to deform the deformable contact pellet. g

LEROY E. SCHROEDER.

REFERENCES CITED UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 731,453 Hargreaves et a1. June 23, 1903 799,861 Meaker Sept. 19, 1905 1,281,983 L'iebknecht Oct. 15, 1918 1,895,845 DHalloy Jan. 31,1933 2,177,453 Donald Oct. 24, 1939 2,275,382 Smith Mar. 3, 1942 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 14,133 Great Britain 1 1902 288,813 Great Britain Apr. 19, 1928 362,756 Great Britain Dec. 10, 1931 690,318 France June 16, 1930 OTHER REFERENCES Alien Property Custodian publication No. 290,026, July 13, 1943. 

